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<title>found love in a spiteful place by Precipice</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28011435">found love in a spiteful place</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Precipice/pseuds/Precipice'>Precipice</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Beauty and the Beast - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Gen, but it's more of a "no man ever steps in the same river twice" sort of thing, feels like i should tag "body dysmorphic disorder", idek</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 20:42:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>430</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28011435</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Precipice/pseuds/Precipice</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Pride and vanity are his pillars - and he cannot pull them down, for he is the temple.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>found love in a spiteful place</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>He does not notice, not until the drunken haze of the wedding day and the sharp relief of the wedding night have passed, not until the dawn of a new life has come and his eyes have grown accustomed to its rays. </p><p>Not until he finds himself, somewhat light-headed and light-hearted still, in front of his wife's dressing table. </p><p>He is looking for a comb, but instead he finds himself looking at...</p><p>(skin instead of fur)</p><p>(teeth instead of fangs) </p><p>(hands instead of paws) </p><p>(nails instead of claws)</p><p>(a face instead of a muzzle)</p><p>(a man instead of a beast)</p><p>... a stranger.</p><p>***</p><p>Pride and vanity are as much a part of him as the title and the castle - his anchor and his chain, his sanctuary and his prison. </p><p>It was pride that spared the mirrors, the fountains, even the cutlery. </p><p>It was vanity that groomed the fur, cleaned the fangs, even polished the claws.</p><p>(Who can ever love a beast?)</p><p>What he lacked in hope, he more than made up for in spite.</p><p>("I can love me.") </p><p>("I shall love me.)</p><p>***</p><p>His new body, his old body, his own body does not feel like his own anymore.</p><p>The clothes exasperate him. Too many laces and layers. </p><p>The cosmetics repulse him. Too much powder and perfume.</p><p>("What a hassle. What a waste.")</p><p>He has never looked less like a prince. </p><p>***</p><p>His new life, his old life, his own life does not feel like his own anymore.</p><p>The intricate dance of courtiers bore him. </p><p>So much artifice. So little sincerity. </p><p>So much noise. So little peace. </p><p>("So many people. Too many people.")</p><p>He has never acted less like a prince. </p><p>***</p><p>Pride and vanity are his sword and his shield - and the war is over.</p><p>He does not feel like a victor.</p><p>(No war has ever been won without losses, without sacrifices, without victims.)</p><p>Pride and vanity are his pillars - and he cannot pull them down, for he is the temple.</p><p>(And the idol with clay feet.)</p><p>(And the priest with bloody hands.)</p><p>Pride and vanity held his head high and kept his back straight when he should have crawled.</p><p>***</p><p>He walks barefoot in the snow and bareheaded in the rain.</p><p>He dresses in white wool during the summer and in black fur during the winter.</p><p>He likes the forest better than his garden, the river better than his bath, the solitude of the library better than the splendor of the ballroom.</p><p>His wife learns to dance alone.</p><p>He wonders if he will turn back into a beast when she stops loving him.</p>
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